The Concept of Trust, with Athena and Simon
by MATT SUNSTON
Summary: Seven pieces of varying sorts, all with Cykesquill at their centre.
1. Moving In

The doorknob of a locked door rattled. A mildly irritated voice could have been faintly heard from the other side if anyone had been inside the small house the voice's owner was waiting outside of. A moment passed in silence before a key was forced into a lock on the door. The voice arose from the other side again when the door still refused to open. Another few seconds later, a second key was used, and the door's lock clicked open. The doorknob turned, and two people entered.

"The _wrong key,_ _Simon…_ c'mon, you've been in here before, haven't you?"

Athena Cykes stepped into the entryway of the small house, her face obscured by two rather large cloth bags, both filled to capacity with groceries.

"I have, but remember that this is Aura's house, not mine."

Simon Blackquill was the second to enter, carrying a bag of his own. He set his aside to close the door behind him. Athena was already several steps into the kitchen beyond the entryway when he picked the bag back up to continue following her.

"I haven't had to unlock the door myself more than once or twice before." Simon went on as he found Athena shifting various scattered objects around on the little kitchen table to set her two bags down.

Letting out a small grunt of exertion as she set down the bags, Athena turned to him. "Well, it's gonna _be_ your house for a while, Simon." she replied. "You'd better get used to remembering which key to use."

Simon didn't respond, so Athena began to dig through the first of the two bags.

"Maybe I ought to congratulate you." she said, a smirk cracking her expression. "You went grocery shopping for yourself for the very first time, at the young age of _twenty-eight."_

Simon chuckled. "I hope you haven't somehow managed to lose your memory of the reason for that, Cykes-dono." he replied. "There's been little opportunity for someone in my position to do so in these past seven years."

Athena rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Well, you're gonna have to be a grown-up now, Simon. You've got your own house and everything."

The house the two were occupying was small, with only a single bedroom and fairly little floor space beyond. It belonged to Simon's older sister, who had chosen to leave it to him now that she was going to be in prison for the immediate future. Aura Blackquill's trial had concluded two days prior. The three attorneys of the Wright Anything Agency had stepped in to represent her at Simon's behest, and while there was no hope of securing an acquittal in light of the roboticist's actions, they had successfully earned her a relatively lenient sentence. Still, this left her house empty for at least a few years, meaning that until Aura's eventual release, Simon was the small home's new owner.

* * *

Athena and Simon spent several minutes sorting away the contents of the three grocery bags. Athena was down to the very last item she'd carried in, and was just checking it over when Simon spoke up again.

"Athena." he said. She looked over.

"Yeah?"

Simon met her eye for a moment, but didn't immediately say anything. His steely gaze was probably intimidating to most people, but Athena knew him much better. She waited patiently, guessing that he wasn't sure of how best to word whatever it was he was going to say.

"I'm certain you've gotten the gist of it already," he began at last, glancing away from her, "But it occurs to me that I never properly thanked you. For taking on my sister's case, I mean."

Athena raised an inquisitive eyebrow. This was a surprise.

"Well, you're welcome, Simon." she said. "Aura didn't make the best decisions she could've, but that was no reason to just leave her to her fate. She deserves a proper defence, like anyone else."

Simon exhaled slowly, still not looking properly at her. When Athena tilted her head a bit, trying to prompt a response from him, he said, "That was all I needed to say. If you're expecting any more, you'll be standing there for quite some time."

Athena crossed her arms and laughed to herself.

"Aww, Simon. You talk so gruff and mean, but you're never gonna trick me."

She set the last item from the grocery bag away in its place and stepped over to him. With a smile, she gave him a sudden teasing jab in the ribs with one fist. She laughed again when Simon's eyes shot open wide and he gave a startled yelp of surprise.

"C'mon." she said. "We've got a lot more to do before you're settled in."

* * *

 _This feels a bit familiar. Here goes another series of short and shippy pieces. Enjoy, and leave a review if you feel so inclined!_


	2. A Small Mistake

_\- Heads up - there's a line or two of mildly NSFW text in this one. Just lettin' you know._

* * *

"Ooh! Neat!"

Darting forward for a better look, Athena left Apollo behind for what was, by his count, the seventh time since they'd arrived. If he didn't know her as well as he did, he might've guessed that she'd somehow forgotten why they were here.

* * *

Two days prior, a stunt actor working in a local theatre had been killed in what seemed to be an accident during a rehearsal for some play neither attorney had ever heard of. Once the investigation began, a longtime stagehand in the theatre was taken into questioning by the police, suspected of negligence in allowing the accident to occur. In response, the theatre's manager contacted Trucy at the Wright Anything Agency. Trucy had performed several rather spectacular magic shows at the theatre in the past few years, and she'd been the first person to come to mind when the manager needed legal help. So, after a quick briefing on the case, Athena and Apollo had set out for the theatre themselves.

Moments after they arrived on the scene together, Apollo pointed out that they hadn't yet decided which of them would be leading the investigation. Athena had teasingly suggested a footrace to the theatre's front doors, which Apollo declined, so in the end, the decision came down to a coin toss. Athena's excitement about the investigation roughly tripled when she won.

* * *

"You stare at that any longer, and you'll be better off just asking to keep it." Apollo remarked, approaching Athena's side. She was examining a large spinning rack with a collection of interesting props and decorations from all manner of scenes arranged on all its sides. It didn't appear to be related to the accident in any meaningful way, but Athena was focused entirely on it for the moment.

"Hmm." she mumbled, leaning in close to examine one prop in particular. "Doesn't Trucy have something similar to this?"

Apollo glanced over. They were in the same large room as the crime scene itself, and he would've preferred to remain focused on the actual investigation itself, but Athena _was_ taking the lead on this one. He sighed, giving in and following her over to take a look for himself.

"Yeah." he said. Athena was gesturing toward a container of some kind, built like a capsule. He could see why she'd been reminded of one of Trucy's magic props. She had one that was nearly identical, though hers was built with a special mechanism that allowed its contents to be surreptitiously swapped out for something else in just a second or two. This one appeared to lack that functionality.

Athena set a hand on the edge of the rack and gave it a light spin. Apollo warily glanced up at the numerous objects hanging precariously overhead, half-expecting one to fall from its place and land on him or Athena.

"I'm just gonna stand back for a second." he said, moving away from the rack. "You have fun with that."

Across the large room, Apollo could see the scene of the actual accident. He wasn't sure who was leading the police investigation just yet, nor the identity of the prosecutor who was going to be taking on the case.

"Hey-!" he exclaimed, grinning as he spotted someone in a familiar white lab coat entering the room.

Ema Skye looked up, having just been busy rooting through her shoulder bag.

"Oh-! Hey, Apollo!" she called out, her voice echoing in the wide open space. "You and Athena are getting in my way again, huh?"

Apollo laughed. "Afraid so, Ema. Trucy insisted we take this one."

Ema approached. "Well, you know the drill. Poke around all you guys want, but just make sure you check in with me before you touch anything." she said. She raised her head a bit to glance over Apollo's shoulder. "You got that, Athena?" she called out.

Athena appeared surprised to hear her. "Uh-… got it, Ema!" she replied, tearing her attention away from the spinning rack.

"Good." Ema said, relaxing. "Prosecutor Monochrome won't be happy if either of you mess anything up. I won't be either, come to think of it."

"Prosecutor Blackquill?" Apollo inquired. "Hmm. I haven't seen you two work together before."

Ema shrugged. "Yeah, it's new. Apparently it's been tough to find detectives willing to work with him. After the fop and your brother, I think I can take on anything."

Apollo grinned. "I hope you're right. Thanks for the all-clear, Ema." he said. Turning back toward Athena, he found her holding up an object she'd taken down from the rack. It was a small machine, similar to the kind used for mixing paints or something else of the sort. "C'm _on,_ Athena…" he said, approaching her once more. "You can check out the rest of that stuff later. Let's go."

"Oh, all right." Athena replied. She stood up on her toes to place the device back on the rack. Apollo flinched when he spotted her stumbling and nearly dropping it. He barely had time to step toward her before he heard a startled shriek.

The device had struck the floor with a dull _thud,_ leaving Athena to stagger back, her arms partially outstretched to her sides.

"Eww…" she groaned loudly, turning to face him. Apollo grimaced. The machine had apparently been activated in some way by the impact, and it seemed that the nozzle on its front had sprayed Athena with some sort of substance Apollo couldn't immediately recognize. Her white and yellow outfit was marked with a grey coating of the stuff that covered most of her upper body and only just stopped short of her face. She gave an uncomfortable noise of distress. "It's sticky… _why is it sticky_ _…_ _?"_ she whined.

Apollo shook his head. He thought it would be a bit mean to laugh, but it was hard to blame anyone other than Athena herself for this incident.

"Well, what did we learn?" he inquired, watching as Athena tried to shake the substance off of her clothes. It looked like an ashy powder of some kind, but the way it was sticking to her clothing suggested something else.

"Apollo, don't just stand there and be sarcastic!" she protested. "Help me out!"

Before Apollo could reply, another voice sounded from behind him.

"Oh my goodness - I'm so sorry!"

Apollo turned in time to see a bespectacled woman in a sky-blue dress approaching them. She had an expression of discomfort plain on her face as she looked over the scene.

"I always tell them to make sure those are empty before putting them back on the rack, but do they listen?" she stammered, running a hand through her lengthy blond hair. "Ms. Cykes, right? Trucy told me you'd be here. I wanted to meet you both at the door, but the police wanted a word…"

"Sorry," Athena interjected at the woman's pause, "But is there any chance you've got something that can clean this off? Or at least something else I can wear…?"

"Oh - y-yes, sorry." she replied. Pointing to a short hallway nearby, she continued, "We've got a closet just over there - you can use whatever you need."

"Thanks…" Athena said, still looking very uncomfortable. She walked past Apollo to head for the closet in question.

The other woman offered a hand to Apollo. "Hello." she said as he accepted the handshake. "I'm the manager. I think we spoke on the phone earlier?"

"I remember." Apollo replied. "I'm Apollo Justice."

* * *

Not far from the scene, Simon Blackquill gestured to Ema, having just spotted her as he entered the room.

"Detective?" he inquired. "I see Justice-dono has taken on the defence. Am I right in assuming that Cykes-dono is with him?"

Ema rolled her eyes. "Yeah, she's here too. Why do you ask?"

"No reason." Simon said. "I thought I might have a word with her before she throws herself into investigating."

"Well, she was just over there, so you go ahead and do what you want." Ema said, reaching up to her forehead to slip her pink-tinted glasses down and over her eyes. "I'm gonna get to work."

Simon left Ema at the scene of the accident, passing by Apollo and the theatre manager as he made his way across the large room. He spotted a light suddenly switching on from beneath a closed door. Guessing this to be where Athena had gone, he adjusted his course.

* * *

"Ugh…" Athena groaned, flicking on the lights and glancing around the closet. It was surprisingly large, and lined with racks of clothing of all sorts. She'd find something, but first she needed to get out of this outfit.

Wasting no time, she slipped her yellow suit jacket off and set it aside on a small table. She fumbled with her tie for a moment, tossing it aside as well before unbuttoning her shirt.

" _Oh, for_ \- c'mon, _really-!?"_

Athena huffed, frowning down at her chest. She'd taken off her shirt only to realize that the grey substance covering her outfit had somehow managed to soak right through to reach even her bra. She groaned loudly, throwing her head back in frustration. Hopefully this closet had a decent selection of underwear in addition to all its other clothing. She hadn't been expecting to wind up needing an entire change of clothes during this investigation.

Reaching around to her back, she unfastened her bra and tossed it onto the pile of discarded clothes as well. Now completely topless save for Widget dangling from her neck, she took a moment to stretch. If she had to bother with changing her clothes, she was at least going to try and work out the slight stiffness in her back as well. Her arms stretched upward and toward the ceiling, and she twisted around on the spot, enjoying the feeling this motion applied to her back. Bringing her hands back down, she set her palms on the back of her head for one more stretch.

Quite abruptly, she was interrupted by the sound of a doorknob turning. Her eyes shot open wide.

A deep voice uttered a grunt of shock. Athena felt frozen in place, rooted to the spot as she stared at the doorway. Simon was standing there, and as the door slowly swung shut behind him, he remained as totally still as Athena herself.

The moment dragged on painfully slowly. Athena didn't know if it was five seconds or a year - her mind was a total blank until she realized something; not only was Simon invading the room while she was half-naked, he was _quite obviously_ staring at her exposed chest. At last, a bubble of anger sprung up from somewhere in her mind.

"S- _Simon-!?"_ she sputtered, wrenching her hands back down from behind her head to frantically cover her bared chest. "Wh _-what are you doing in here-!?"_

Simon's mouth opened, but nothing intelligible made it out. Looking somewhat like a fish, he opened and closed his mouth several times until at last he managed to mumble something halfway coherent. He finally averted his eyes, turning away as his pale complexion became visibly flushed with red.

"Simon." Athena repeated, her voice loud as she tried to sound firm despite her embarrassment. _"Why - are - you - still - here-!?"_

Simon mumbled something else, sounding the least composed Athena thought she'd ever heard him.

" _Go-!"_ she snapped, red-faced and struggling to understand why he hadn't simply left the room yet. _"Get the hell out! Leave-!"_

At last, Simon fumbled for the doorknob and exited the room, leaving Athena to bury her face in her hands and utter an indignant scream of humiliation.

* * *

Five minutes later, Athena exited the closet for herself, having put together an acceptable outfit from the room's collection. She was fighting to keep the blush that had been enveloping her face down, and she found Simon standing in silence just outside, in the hall.

" _Simon."_ she greeted him, her voice low. _"We're going to pretend that never happened, OK?"_

Her words were closer to an order than a request.

Simon cleared his throat and finally spoke up. "… Agreed." he said shortly.

"Pretend what…?"

Athena blinked in surprise. She hadn't noticed at first, but Apollo was here in the hall as well.

"Nothing." she lied. Turning to face him instead, she asked, "Did you find out anything useful?"

"Um…" Apollo glanced between her and Simon for a moment. "Yeah, a bit. I can explain once we get back to the scene. Ema can help us out, too."

A pause hung over the group. After a moment, Simon gave a loud and rather obviously false cough.

"I'll be going back for myself." he said stiffly. "Justice-dono, I trust that neither of you will cause any difficulties for my investigation."

Simon was just attempting to walk past Apollo and leave the hall when Athena grabbed him by the shoulder and forcibly turned him around again.

"Hey-!" she growled. There was something she'd detected in Simon's voice that did nothing to improve her mood. It might have been better not to say anything, but she couldn't help herself. Giving the prosecutor's shoulder a firm shake, she snapped, "I can hear you loud and clear, Simon - s _top thinking about my **boobs-!**_

Maybe, if she weren't still so horribly embarrassed, she would've laughed at the noises that both Simon and Apollo uttered in reaction.

* * *

 _So, there's part two. Like always, leave a review if you feel inclined. I appreciate the feedback._


	3. Delightfully Vague

The main office room of the Wright Anything Agency was, at the moment, relatively quiet. It was common for at least one conversation to be going on between the office's various occupants, but none could be heard presently.

Footsteps shifted to and fro on the building's second floor, audible above the office's ceiling, but otherwise, the room was near-silent.

Apollo sat alone, resting an elbow on his cluttered desk. Several documents relevant to a recent case sat, forgotten, before him. Apollo was idly twirling a pen in his left hand, currently focused only on his train of thought. Earlier in the day, he'd been speaking with Trucy, and one of the things she said in that discussion had led him to the thoughts now occupying his mind.

Just over three months ago, he'd returned home to LA from nearly a year's stay in The Kingdom of Khura'in. It felt better than he could describe to be back home with his friends here in the Wright Anything Agency, especially after such a lengthy absence. Helping to rebuild what remained of Khura'in's recently-revolutionized legal system had been one of the biggest challenges he'd yet faced in his career. Finally, after eleven months, he'd felt it was at last time to bid the far-off kingdom farewell, letting his contributions to the country's reform take effect.

Coming home, he'd found things in LA to be comfortably familiar. Little had changed, and that suited him perfectly well. The Wright Anything Agency was the same lively workplace he remembered, though perhaps even livelier than before with Maya Fey's return the previous year. It wasn't long before Apollo was right back into work again, taking on cases and reacquainting with friends.

Quite recently, however, something very interesting _had_ happened, and it was this change that inspired the conversation point that now left him deep in thought.

His friend and co-worker Athena had come into work on an otherwise unremarkable Monday, her expression a bright smile and Widget's small screen projecting a soft green light normally reserved for outbursts of joy from his wearer. It was hard to miss Athena's sunny mood, and when she was asked about the subject, her response came as quite a shock to all three of her co-workers.

She'd been visiting with her longtime friend, the prosecutor Simon Blackquill, the evening before, and the pair had shared a conversation that, one way or another, led to both Simon and Athena herself each making an unexpected confession.

Athena was in love. While the particular details of her conversation with Simon remained a mystery to her other friends, she'd admitted to him that, at some point since they'd been reunited after she began her career as a defence lawyer, she'd fallen in love with him. Even more surprising was Simon's confession that he returned her feelings.

Hearing of this left Apollo in something of a daze. He knew that Athena and Simon were incredibly close. There was no doubting the bond the two shared as a result of their commitment to protecting one another. Simon had spent seven years in prison on death row in order to prevent any possible suspicion from falling on Athena in regards to her mother's murder years ago. Then, once she'd grown up, Athena had dedicated her time in school and the first six months of her career almost exclusively to her effort to prove Simon's innocence in her mother's death as well. Uncovering the truth had been an emotionally-taxing experience for both of them, but they'd come through it together.

Still, Apollo couldn't imagine how on earth the two could possibly have developed feelings for one another. He knew Athena very well. He considered her his closest living friend, having spent a great deal of time with her in their shared workplace and outside of work as well, and he never had to wonder whether or not she cared about Simon as much as her actions suggested. They had the sort of bond that he doubted anything could possibly hope to break. But still - love? It was difficult for him to really understand.

It wasn't that he had no experience with romance. Truthfully, while he'd never dated anyone before, he was working out some questionable feelings of his own at the moment. He thought he might be coming to understand how it felt to care about another person in that way. He wasn't quite certain, though - Athena was the psychologist, not him. His basic understanding of the idea gave him some criteria to review. From what he'd seen, there wasn't much that Simon and Athena had in common. Wasn't that something that was generally considered pretty important for couples? Understanding that his cheerful co-worker was such close friends with someone as gloomy and often abrasive as Prosecutor Blackquill was difficult enough to follow on its own - what common ground did the two have for a romantic relationship?

* * *

Uttering a sigh, Apollo let his pen drop gently to the desktop. He didn't have the faintest idea. Maybe it would be better to just ask one of them. Athena, preferably.

Almost like she'd been waiting for him to snap out of his thoughts, Athena herself entered the room almost immediately as Apollo leaned back to his desk to finish up the partly-filled documents he'd been working on.

"Hey, Athena…?" he inquired. She looked over at him.

"What's up?" she asked, grinning.

"I was wondering - well, me and Trucy… you and Blackquill."

"Simon?" Athena replied, tilting her head curiously. "What about us?"

Apollo hesitated. He didn't want to sound rude, or sound like he was trying to pry into their business.

(I mean, it doesn't even really matter to _me._ Not _that_ much. It's _Trucy_ who cares, really…)

"Um… OK, maybe I'm just kinda clueless on this, but… if you two are dating now, after so long... what changed, exactly? I-if you don't mind my asking."

Athena gave him a curious look. She sat down at her desk opposite his and spun her chair around on its wheels.

"What d'you mean?" she asked. "I told you guys about how we got together, didn't I?"

"Well, yeah…" Apollo replied. "I just mean… something had to have happened between you guys to make you realize what you felt for each other, right? You don't exactly seem to have a whole lot in common, so-"

"We don't?" Athena interrupted him, sounding surprised. "… I never really thought about that. I guess you don't see us hanging around together that much, huh?"

"I'd rather stay away from that stupid bird," Apollo answered, "So no."

Athena laughed. "Can't blame you. We actually share a whole lot of things - y'know, hobbies, interests, and such."

"OK," Apollo said, hoping she would elaborate further, "But how'd you guys get to where you are now? You just seem so different from each other - practically opposites, in fact."

Athena laughed again. "I guess we do, don't we? I'm all smiles and energy, while Simon dresses like he's going to a funeral every day of his life and acts about the same."

Apollo nodded. "That's about what I keep thinking. There's gotta be something that really brings you guys together, though, right?"

"One, there's one thing." Athena said, a wide smile splitting across her face. "You wanna hear it?"

Apollo shrugged. "… Kinda."

"Well, alright." Athena said, leaning over the back of her chair. Kicking off the floor, she pushed her chair over to his desk. "If there's any one thing Simon and I have in common, it's this…"

She gestured for him to lean in toward her. When he did so, she cleared her throat and whispered directly into his ear. Her voice came out in a tone Apollo recognized; she sounded this way whenever she wanted to tease him.

"Simon loves me, and I love him."

* * *

 _There's part three. Hope you enjoyed, please leave a review if there's anything you'd like to say._


	4. Visits

Athena found it odd to stand by her desk in the Wright Anything Agency, as familiar a place to her as any other in LA, and somehow still feel like a stranger. She had, technically, been working here since the day she first returned to the US from overseas. Given today's date of December 29th, 2028, she'd been a member of the Wright Anything Agency for well over a year and a half. For that reason, the feeling currently welled up inside her seemed a bit out-of-place. It was a feeling that seemed to distance her from the familiarity of the little law office and its usual occupants, despite the length of her time here.

When she really thought about it, Athena knew the reason that she felt this way. It had now been over half a year since she and the two Wrights returned home from their trip to Khura'in, leaving Apollo behind as they went. For the first week or two after they'd come back, Athena found herself frequently forgetting, just for the briefest of moments, that her senior co-worker wasn't here anymore. She could have been poring over a stack of legal documents, bored out of her mind, impulsively spinning her chair around to strike up a conversation with Apollo, only to find his desk vacant. Other times, she would find herself walking back to the office from a lunch run, only realizing partway there that she'd picked up an extra bowl of noodles for Apollo, despite his absence.

Meeting Apollo and subsequently working her first ever case with him was the very first thing she'd done as an employee of the Wright Anything Agency, and even now, the better part of a year after his indefinite departure, the office still felt wrong, somehow, without Apollo in it.

He was a good friend. One of the best, she'd say if anyone asked. So, even in spite of her current musings on the effect his absence had on her, it was hard to feel too sad when she considered that she and the Wrights would be making a trip out to Khura'in in just one day in order to see him.

The trip was an event planned well in advance. Trucy, her father, and Athena herself had all agreed without hesitation that they needed to find themselves an opportunity to visit with Apollo whenever possible, and as they neared the end of the year, they'd concluded that New Year's was the best time for it. The trio planned out their holiday in great detail, but somehow, despite their great excitement, they managed to keep it a secret, concealed from Apollo himself. Covertly, Trucy had inquired with him about what he thought he might do for New Year's, and so far as she could tell, their sudden arrival would be a fantastic surprise for him.

Athena was excited beyond words for the trip, but there was one catch.

Simon Blackquill, one of the first people she'd thought of when wondering who she might like to invite along for the trip, had declined to come along. Athena had insisted, telling him that he needed a vacation for the new year more than anyone she knew, but the gloomy prosecutor remained firm in his refusal.

Athena sighed. By now, it was much too late to try and convince Simon again. Still, since they were leaving so soon, she wanted to make sure that she had a chance to at least say goodbye to him before going. The Wright Anything Agency would be closing up early for their trip, so she planned to drop by Simon's house some time after work.

* * *

Simon Blackquill was never quite the social type. This was something that he knew Athena recognized quite well, but then, he also knew _Athena._ The young defence lawyer was as difficult to remove from a conversation as anyone he'd ever met. Still, once she seemed satisfied with her evening visit to his house, she'd left with a friendly wave and a smile. It was for this reason that Simon could not fathom why on earth he was awoken the next morning by a knock at his door earlier than even the sunrise.

He shuffled out of his bedroom and toward the entry, fumbling for a light switch on the way and regretting finding it almost immediately as the bulb clicked on.

"… Athena."

Athena would have needed to try quite hard to look any more out-of-place. She was standing on the step just outside his front door, dressed in a heavy coat and slightly red in the face from the chill outside. A very light snowfall filled the air around her as she flashed a bright smile, somehow looking fully awake in spite of the current time.

"Heya, Simon!" she greeted him. Simon waited for an explanation on her presence here, but instead of saying anything more, Athena simply lunged forward, grabbing him around the chest in a hug.

He uttered a grunt of surprise, caught off-guard. Once he'd recovered, he caught her eye.

"Athena," he asked, his eyelids heavy, "Why are you here?"

Athena gave him the same infuriating grin as before.

"Because I'm leaving with the boss and Trucy today! Duh!"

Simon blinked. His expression was completely unmoving. Athena simply continued to smile at him, and he cleared his throat to speak again.

"Athena." he repeated. Once certain that she was paying attention, he asked, _"Why are you here?"_

At last, Athena's grin sank a bit. She released her hold on him and stepped back, crossing her arms. This looked like a somewhat challenging gesture, given the thickness of her winter coat.

"Because I'm gonna _miss you,_ dummy." she said, as if this explained her presence any better. "I can't just hop on a plane across the world without saying goodbye."

Simon blinked two more times, his brow furrowed. "I seem to recall you visiting here last night." he said, placing a hand on the door in preparation to close it. "And, unless I am much mistaken, you ended _that_ visit by saying 'goodbye'."

Athena rolled her eyes, and was about to reply before Simon cut in once more.

"Actually, I believe your precise words were, 'see ya in a week, Simon! I'm gonna miss you!', which, I believe, covers your bases quite well."

Athena's arms dropped back to her sides as she rolled her entire head on her shoulders.

"C'mon, Simon. I know you're a total stick-in-the-mud, but you could at least humour me here."

"Athena, it's not even six in the morning. I'm a bit beyond humour at the moment."

Simon watched, repressing his urge to bark an irritable farewell to Athena and shut the door in her face. That was most definitely what he _wanted_ to do, but he had to admit to himself that she deserved better, even if her presence here was doing nothing to improve his mood.

Athena sighed. "Well, I just wanted to stop by before I get to the airport. she said, gesturing to her small car parked behind Simon's own in front of the house. "You're the only friend I have time to stop in with. Junie's out of the city for the holidays, and-"

"Wrap this up, Athena." Simon interjected. When Athena struck a pout, he added, _"Please."_

"Oh, alright. I'll see you later, Simon." she said. "But…"

Simon uttered another surprised grunt as Athena pulled him into a hug once more. He stumbled, catching himself on the step just outside the door. Snowflakes pricked at his bare arms, his thin grey t-shirt unable to stop them.

"One last hug before I go." Athena finished, her voice laced with teasing.

" _Athena_ _…_ _"_ he growled, wanting very badly to go back to bed.

"Nope. This one's mine." she said, squeezing her grip on him more tightly. Simon groaned with exasperation and brought his arms up to return the hug. That had to be what Athena wanted. To his further annoyance, she just giggled in response, rather than releasing him. "Now, if you could fake it more convincingly, Simon, I might believe that you don't like my hugs." she said. "But, see, I know you're lying."

Simon closed his eyes, a small part of his brain regretting his friendship with someone who possessed hearing as sensitive to emotion as Athena's.

* * *

 _Part four, duly delivered. Review, if you so choose._


	5. One More

In the eyes of many, Prosecutor Simon Blackquill was a terror of the courtroom. As a prosecutor, his merciless dedication to his craft secured him a hard-earned reputation amongst those who knew of him. Criminals, whose sentences he ensured with great prejudice, police, who respected his commitment and gave their utmost to support his case whenever he was called upon for an investigation, and countless others acquainted with him on a professional level - any of those brought into contact with Blackquill in his line of work knew of his abilities. Precious few would be so overconfident as to assume themselves the stronger force when compared with him.

So, watching Simon scroll through a list of movie titles, lying lazily back against an old couch and dressed in a grey t-shirt, black flannel pants and a pair of grey socks she was reasonably certain had at least a few holes in them, Athena needed to summon the best of her mental fortitude not to laugh.

Barring perhaps Simon's older sister, Athena thought she might just be the only person in the world who truly knew Simon Blackquill beyond the menacing persona he'd spent so long cultivating in his work.

"Hey - where do you want this one?" she asked, lifting up a pizza box she was supporting with one hand. Simon, currently mumbling something under his breath, responded only by dismissively waving his hand toward the coffee table in the middle of the small living room. Athena shrugged, walking over and setting the box down. She flipped open the lid to reveal a simple pepperoni pizza, fresh from a delivery.

Tonight was a perfectly normal Sunday evening in mid-July. Athena had convinced Simon to let her visit for the evening, suggesting a movie night. She'd tried in the past to invite him over to the Wright Anything Agency for similar kinds of get-togethers, but Simon had consistently refused. Athena scoffed at his stubbornness when it came to avoiding so many social activities, but she didn't push the matter. She'd secured this one meetup all the same, so it would do for now.

Simon reached out with his free hand and retrieved a slice of pizza from the box without so much as looking at it. Athena smirked, watching him from beside the table, her arms crossed.

"Y'know, Simon, most people like to _see_ what they're eating before they put it in their mouths." she said. "For all you know, I went ahead and ordered every last thing you hate on the pizza."

Seemingly ignoring her, Simon took a bite from his slice and continued crawling the list of movie titles on the TV across the room.

"Surely you would never attempt something so petty against your gracious host." he said dryly.

Athena couldn't help but laugh. "Gracious? You?" she replied, dropping onto the couch beside him. "Compared to a grizzly bear, maybe, but even then I think the bear would have a fighting chance."

Simon didn't respond. He'd stopped scrolling through the list.

"Here," he said after a moment to make his selection, "I believe you mentioned this some time ago."

Athena looked at the screen, her face lighting up. "Ooh! You're finally gonna try Lunar Samurai? Like I said, it's great!"

"We'll see." Simon replied. "I seem to recall enjoying the pilot. I must admit I was surprised to hear that it had been given a second chance by the studio."

Athena grabbed a slice of pizza for herself. The extensive, interconnected universe of Steel Samurai spinoff films and TV series hadn't been an easy sell for her, but Apollo and Trucy had converted her into a fan with time. Catching Simon up on all the releases he'd missed during his prison time was continuing to be a fun experience for her.

* * *

Roughly an hour into the movie, following a tense sequence in which the titular Lunar Samurai was rescued from an ambush by a well-timed attack by the movie's female lead, Simon briefly muttered about a bathroom break and rose from the couch, pausing the movie as he went. Athena, her knees tucked to her chest as she sat on the couch's other side, watched him leave the room.

She smiled. Simon wasn't the kind of person to let his guard down around most others. She wondered whether that was something he'd developed in prison, or if he'd always been that way. As a child, she'd looked up to him, but now that she reflected upon that time, she recognized that she'd never really known him that well as the 21 year-old rookie prosecutor he'd been. She felt a pleasant sort of warmth in her chest at the knowledge that he trusted her so completely as to willingly relax when just the two of them were around.

She supposed that, when she'd been growing up and pushing herself to succeed in her schooling, all for the goal of proving Simon's confession to the murder of her mother to be a lie, she had always envisioned a very idealized version of him in her mind. Meeting him again as a young woman had given her a lot to think about, and it was those thoughts that occupied her mind as she and her friends from the Wright Anything Agency had fought to accomplish her longtime goal.

She leaned into the armrest of the couch, bringing a hand back to brush her long hair out of her way. Her red hair was out of its usual side ponytail, instead brushed back to hang all the way down her back. She hadn't ever done more than get her bangs trimmed in all her years working toward saving Simon. She wasn't really sure of why. By now, her hair hung down to just short of her knees, which even she had to admit was a rather excessive length. Still, she liked it enough to continue letting it grow at least a while longer. Simon's hair was nearly comparable, anyway. His unruly mane of black hair was rougher than hers, and he clearly didn't give as much of an effort to taming it.

Footsteps sounded and Simon re-entered the room. Athena tugged the blanket covering her legs up higher as he returned to the couch.

"Oh-… thanks!" she said brightly, accepting a glass of iced tea when he offered it to her. Simon nodded to her before sitting back down to resume the movie.

* * *

Another lull in the movie's frequent action gave Athena a near-miss with her drowsiness. This couch was much more comfortable than it looked, and the room was pleasantly cool thanks to the rattling air conditioner on the window behind her. She shook herself awake and picked up her half-finished drink.

She did a double-take at the sight of the pizza box. Only two slices remained.

(I only _ate_ two! How hungry were you, Simon…?)

Simon didn't appear to notice as she looked over at him. His health had clearly improved tenfold since his exoneration. His once-pale skin was much more flushed with colour, and the dark streaks beneath his eyes had nearly faded. His arms showed easily-noticeable muscle definition, indicative of a strong exercise regimen.

Athena's eyes trailed over her friend's profile. Without really thinking, she reached over and gently flicked a wayward strand of black hair dangling next to Simon's ear back behind it. He jerked in response, looking at her questioningly.

"Oh-… sorry, just a habit." she said, gesturing for him to return his focus to the movie. Simon met her eye, holding the look for just a few seconds. Just when Athena was beginning to wonder why he was staring, he stopped.

It wasn't long before her attention was returned to the screen as well. A great deal of tension was building up in the movie's current scene. The Lunar Samurai had removed his iconic mask, which had been damaged in his most recent battle. His blue eyes stood out sharply in the scene, haunting in their weary appearance. Opposite him, his female co-star and love interest, a woman named Rachel, was describing an account of all she'd been through since being dragged into his adventure, nursing an injured leg all the while. She spoke of brushes with death and questionable decisions, of regrets, and of choices she'd make again in a heartbeat. If Athena's movie-watching instincts were correct, she knew where this was going.

The scene went near-silent as Rachel finished her speech. She and the Samurai stared at one another, their faces partly obscured by darkness in the building they'd found shelter inside. The Samurai reached toward her, only for his hand to falter mere inches from her face. He took in a strained breath, and Athena felt her heart melt as he uttered just two words.

"… _You're right."_

Athena's eyes remained firmly fixed on the screen, but as she watched Rachel lean forward and briefly kiss the Samurai on the cheek, she couldn't help but notice the sound of a sigh from beside her on the couch. Her ears didn't lie. With just that one little noise, Simon wordlessly confirmed to her that he was every bit as invested in the movie's scene as she was.

* * *

The movie's declining ten minutes saw Rachel and the Samurai heading off into the inevitability of another great battle, promising to always protect one another. Only once the credits at last began to roll did Athena finally tear her eyes from the screen and look over at Simon. He was sitting quite still, his eyes fixed across the room. For a moment Athena wondered why he was still so focused on the credits, but she quickly realized that he was lost in thought, just staring off into space.

"Hey, Simon…?" she inquired. He twitched, turning to look back at her.

"Yes?" he asked. Athena felt a bit startled by his immediate reply. He was unusually open.

"Uh-…" she muttered, her train of thought delayed, "So, did you like the movie?"

Simon's eyes narrowed just a touch, but he replied, "I did. I can see why you spoke so highly of it."

Athena grinned. "I know, right? I can't believe they ever tried to cancel the series!"

Simon chuckled. "I won't presume to know the inner workings of film and television studios, but corporate executives rarely have the preferences of _fans_ in mind." he said, straightening up and turning away as he stretched backward over the back of the couch.

"You're probably right…" Athena agreed, rolling her eyes. She let herself slide down toward the floor, flexing her toes and yawning. "So… thanks a bunch for letting me come over for this." she said once her airway was cleared again. "I kinda wish you'd be more open to this kind of thing, but it's a great start!"

Simon chuckled in his familiar fashion. "For one so well-versed in psychology as yourself, Athena, you seem quite dense when it comes to my personal social preferences."

Athena flinched, surprised by the sudden jab. "Hey-!" she protested. "All I'm doing is offering advice! Remember - I used to be closed-off and quiet around other people, too. It's not for everyone, but opening up helped me a lot. Sure, you might still not like it in the end, but you could at least give it a shot some time!"

Simon pushed off from the edge of the couch, turning to face her. His arms folded and he cocked his head slightly to smirk at her.

"If you're so persistent, Athena, you'd do well to hone your persuasive techniques." he said.

Without missing a beat, Athena replied, "And if _you_ got that stick out of your butt, maybe you'd be less _re_ sistant."

To her pleasant surprise, Simon gave a bark of laughter. "Another time, then, Athena." he said. "Now, it's getting to be quite late. I don't imagine you fancy staying out in the dark in this part of the city any more than your own. Might I advise that you think about heading home?"

"Aww…" Athena groaned, pouting. "You're kicking me out already? I thought we were making progress…"

"Kicking you out?" Simon repeated, gathering up the pizza box and his own empty glass. "Hardly - I'm merely offering _you_ advice."

Athena shook her head, smiling. "Whatever, Simon."

She watched once more as he left the room to discard everything he'd collected. It was nice to have conversations like this with Simon. It had been a slow process, but in the time since she'd helped to clear his name, she truly felt that Simon had come to see her as a good friend, and more importantly, as an adult.

It hurt to remember that day in court, when he'd tried once again to falsely confess to her mother's murder in order to protect her. She hadn't put herself through the intense work involved with earning both her degrees just to have him repeat his previous tactic like she was still the same sheltered child in need of protection.

An idea crept into her mind. Moving quietly, Athena rose from the couch and crossed the room toward the door Simon had gone through. She placed herself flat to the wall, hoping he wouldn't notice her when he re-entered.

Seconds passed, and Simon could be heard walking back. Athena waited for her moment. When at last he passed through the doorway, she pounced forward, throwing her arms around his neck in a combination of a tackle and a hug. Simon gave a startled bark of surprise, nearly falling over on the spot. Athena grinned deviously, hugging him tightly. It took a moment, but Simon cast her a sideways glance and wrenched forward. She was the one caught off-guard this time, suddenly feeling her feet leave the ground as Simon lifted her over his broad shoulder.

"Hey…!" she protested. Simon needed the element of surprise to pull a move like that on her. She knew for a fact that she was stronger than him. That fact amused her near-endlessly, but it wasn't doing much good now that he'd dragged her onto his shoulder like a weighted bag. Simon took a few steps back toward the couch, and Athena took the time to plan her counterattack. Once Simon was in the right place, she lurched from her awkward position. She felt Simon tense, trying to steady himself, but she managed to put him off-balance. He staggered and fell, landing on his back against the couch. Athena rolled in place and ended up lying on top of him, catching herself with one palm flat to his chest and the other sinking in behind the couch cushion. She smirked, giggling triumphantly. Simon flashed a smirk of his own in response.

"Well done." he said. "You only needed to ambush me."

Athena scoffed, not about to cave to his words so easily. "Oh yeah? Just try and stand back up."

Simon could be felt attempting to push himself upright, but Athena reacted quickly enough to pin his arms down. He grunted with the effort, but he couldn't overpower her.

"Ha!" she cheered, throwing a fist into the air. She leaned back, letting the pressure off of him, but Simon still didn't sit upright. Athena, resting on her knees, smiled at him. "So, I guess we found the one fight that the big bad Twisted Samurai can't win. Now, what's my prize going to be for this one…?"

Simon still didn't push himself up, instead just adjusting his arms to comfort and waiting.

"Ah! I know…" Athena said with a smirk as an idea flashed into her mind. It was just a silly little impulse, and she barely gave it any thought as she leaned down toward him.

Feeling an electric sort of tingle on contact, she pressed her lips to his. Athena's eyes drifted shut, and her whole world seemed to vanish in an instant. She felt Simon's warmth against her, encircling her whole body like a welcome blanket as the seconds wore on.

...

A sudden jolt shot through her entire body as Simon responded to her in an entirely unexpected manner. His hands rose to her sides, gently taking a hold on her shoulders. Moreover, unless Athena was entirely mistaken, he was _returning_ her kiss. Her eyes opened wide, only to find Simon's closed. She'd only been thinking of this as a brief and teasing sort of kiss, but before she could stop herself, she'd turned it into much more.

...

What were they doing? What was _Simon_ doing? Was he, even now, trying to get back at her?

No. No, somehow she could tell that wasn't the reason. She pulled herself back, taking in a breath when she realized she'd run out. Simon's dark eyes opened partway. His face was framed by curtains of her red hair falling against him. Before she could think to stop herself, Athena claimed his lips once more in another kiss.

This was definitely not what she'd been thinking of when she called Simon to try and arrange this movie night. She'd envisioned a movie, pizza, some friendly conversation about life and work - needless to say, making out with Simon like they were a pair of teenagers wasn't something that had made it onto her list. She uttered a startled squeak as she felt a slight tug against her lower lip. She opened her eyes to find Simon's intense stare practically boring a hole through her.

This wasn't what she'd planned, but now that it was happening, she wanted it more than anything in the world.

* * *

 _..._

 _And there we have part five_.


	6. The Light

Athena loved her bed. After she'd spent much of her tenure in Europe sleeping on a number of uncomfortable beds with varying problems, she'd made certain that buying herself a decent new mattress was one of her first priorities in her new apartment when she moved back to LA. No matter how she was feeling, she could always find herself a comfortable position and wake up the next morning feeling ready for anything.

It was for this reason that she found it immediately disconcerting to wake up and realize that she was _not_ in her bed.

For a moment, she remained completely still, lying on her side. The room was dark. She could hear a ceiling fan overhead. Finally, as her senses began to properly catch up with her, she caught the sound of a low grumble to her left, unmistakably a snore.

"Simon…" she breathed. Clear memories of last night finally eclipsed her sleepy haze. She lifted a hand, bringing it toward the other figure in the bed. Her fingertips found an unruly tangle of hair, which she pushed past to brush her hand over Simon's broad and solid shoulders. He was lying in about the same position as she was, his back turned to her. The blanket slipped from her upper body when she reached her arm further, bringing her hand to Simon's face. She shuddered at the slight chill, remembering that she had decided to lose her shirt before going to bed.

Now, unless she'd somehow suffered some kind of brain damage overnight, she and Simon had only gone as far as sharing the bed. Anything beyond that was more than either of them felt ready for.

Caught by surprise, she uttered a startled squeak that cut sharply through the quiet of the room as a firm grip suddenly clamped onto her wrist. She smiled.

"Hey…" she said softly, relaxing as Simon maintained his grip on her hand. She received a noncommittal grunt of reply. Simon rolled onto his back, and Athena found that her eyes had adjusted to the darkness enough to see his face. "Morning, Simon." she greeted him, smiling warmly.

Simon was silent for a moment. "… Athena." he replied, finding his voice.

Athena listened intently, hoping he would say more. "Um… have a nice sleep?" she prompted him when he fell silent again.

"Hmph…" Simon grumbled back, "This bed wasn't made with two people in mind."

Athena rolled her eyes. Judging by his casual tone, Simon was feeling about the same way as she was right now. The euphoria they'd shared the previous evening had worn off by now, letting them find their way back to reality. Nevertheless, there was a warmth still welling up inside her even as the room became silent once more.

She turned back to see the clock resting on the small table on her side of the bed. True to her usual form, she'd woken up just a few minutes before her usual out-of-bed time. Today was Monday, so she needed to get her normal weekday routine on the move.

"Um…" she mumbled, looking back at Simon. He was lying quite still. "You ready to get up? I should get ready for work."

Simon took in a very heavy breath, letting it out slowly. His grip on her wrist loosened until she could slip her hand free.

"… Simon?" she inquired. He still wasn't saying anything more. A creeping worry began to spring up in the back of her mind. Even someone as skilled at concealing his emotions as Simon couldn't keep a thing from her so long as he continued to speak, but she couldn't do anything about his silence. What was he thinking about? She couldn't help but worry that he was becoming uncomfortable with her presence here. "Simon," she repeated, "I-… um…"

She bit her lip. This probably wasn't worth getting nervous over, but she couldn't stop herself. She almost jumped in surprise when Simon suddenly spoke.

"Athena, if I've been-… if you feel that I've been… untoward-…"

Athena flinched. She couldn't remember the last time Simon had sounded like this. Hearing him demonstrate any level of vulnerability was uncommon to begin with, but right now, the anxiety plain in his voice was downright alien to her.

"No-…" she said, frowning at how softly her voice came out. "No. Simon, you haven't-…"

She hadn't expected this much difficulty in just speaking her mind. Truthfully, she felt almost overwhelmed with joy, her every thought so consumed with her own elation that she could barely compose words adequate to describe the feeling. She cleared her throat. She needed her voice to be firm and clear right now.

"Simon, I want you to understand something, OK?"

Simon was silent, awaiting her elaboration.

"This - everything we've done since last night…" she said, straightening up to sit upright, "This was what I wanted. This, with me - does this… bother you?"

She wasn't going to take silence as an answer this time. She waited, and finally, Simon replied, "... It doesn't."

Studying his tone carefully, Athena went on, "Do you… this is gonna sound a bit weird, but… do you _want it_ to bother you? Do you feel like it _should_ …?"

Athena had her reasons for wondering. It was hard for her to imagine that Simon felt one hundred percent comfortable with what they'd done following her spontaneous kiss the night before. The act had been impulsive, and even when she'd first done it, she hadn't imagined what would happen next.

Another slow breath from Simon.

"Tell you what - I'm gonna go and have a shower. I need to get home and get my outfit for work together. Take a few minutes to think, and I'll be right back."

Slipping carefully to the floor, Athena set her feet down and stood up. She located Widget, lying next to the clock. The little device's screen was off, but it lit up immediately as her fingers brushed over it. She concealed the glowing screen in her palm as she left the room. She was wearing a set of baggy pajama pants she'd found in a drawer in Simon's room, but was down to her underwear otherwise. The air was cool on her skin as she headed for the bathroom.

* * *

Simon dragged an arm upward and laid it across his forehead. Countless thoughts flitted to and fro in his mind. He felt better rested than he could remember ever having been. For much of the night, Athena had stayed close to him, providing him with her warmth and a sense of intimate contact that was unfamiliar to him.

He remembered a girl he'd known in high school. Her facial features had faded from his mind over the years, but he remembered her laugh. It had been soft and pleasant to listen to. He'd thought once or twice back then of asking her out, but he'd never gone through with it.

He dragged his palm down and over his face. He wasn't feeling certain of anything right now. He'd just spent the night with Athena; the same young woman he'd spent his years in prison simply wishing for the safety of. That dark time felt far away by now, and he gladly bid it farewell.

When he'd first seen Athena again, standing opposite his bench in the courtroom, he had experienced one of the strangest feelings he could recall. The quiet girl he'd been willing to give his own life to protect was gone, and in her place, there stood a bright-eyed and passionate woman with a temper and heart that seemed to come from someone else entirely. The disconnect between this young woman and Metis' daughter never ceased to be a source of wonder to him. Over time, he'd come to understand that Athena's immense growth and seeming rebirth into an entirely new person had all been for the ultimate goal of returning his favour by saving _him._ He'd thought it ignorant at first, the way Athena threw herself headlong into her work even as she faced him in court repeatedly, always determined to tear down the barriers he'd built for himself and bring the truth of her mother's murder to light, no matter what it cost her. But in the end, even he couldn't fathom the true depth and strength of Athena's will. She accomplished her goal, and where he'd spent years seeing only the end of his life in store for him, he suddenly found an open and unobstructed expanse of paths newly re-opened to him. She and her friends had saved him.

He groaned with frustration, throwing aside the blanket and running both his hands through his hair and over his face. He didn't know what to feel, and he hated it. He hated the conflict brewing inside his own mind, as he silently tore himself apart with rationalizations and accusations.

Athena said that she wanted this - that she was happy to have spent the night with him. That, he supposed, should have been good enough for him. He remembered the warmth he'd felt as she kissed him, her contact alone describing her countless feelings in detail to him. He'd been happy in that moment, and that feeling had remained as their evening led them to here, in his bedroom.

All they'd done was sleep together. Their intimacy had gone no further than Athena removing her shirt when he removed his own. Perhaps he was being stupid to feel like he'd crossed any kind of invisible line in going along with her, but he couldn't bring himself to shake the nagging feeling in his mind.

Athena was an adult. Just like him, she had been through suffering and made herself stronger for it. When she made the decisions that led her to the events of last night, it had been with confidence. He ran this through his head time and again, but somehow, the nagging worry in the back of his mind persisted.

* * *

Humming softly, a serene smile on her face, Athena stepped back out into the hall. The shower here was nicer than her own, which made up for the slightly lacking mattress back on Simon's bed. She returned to his room, surprised to find it still dark. She set one hand on her hip, frowning as she fumbled for the light switch. She half-expected to see Simon sleeping again, but she instead found him sitting upright on the bed, his face hidden from view. Simon looked over when the lights came on.

Athena was confused for half a second as Simon's gaze focused just below her own eyes.

"Oh-…" she mumbled, realizing what he was looking at; Widget's screen was glowing with a soft green. She smiled, feeling her face heat up just a bit. "I guess I'm as transparent as ever, huh?"

To her relief, Simon smirked. "Yours is a double-edged blade, Cykes-dono." he said dryly. "I hardly need that device around to see what you're feeling at a glance."

"Hmph." Athena huffed, folding her arms. "And here I was thinking we'd have a nice talk before I head home."

She crossed the room, sitting down on the edge of the bed. She met Simon's gaze, smiling once more.

"So, how are you feeling?" she asked pointedly.

Simon, sitting cross-legged in the centre of the mattress, relaxed his hands and replied, "Do I detect a slight hint of anxiousness from you, now? Even after your assurances to me?"

Athena didn't let his jab get to her, just rolling her eyes and answering back, "Well, when I'm dealing with someone as _fragile_ as you, I can't let myself be too reckless."

Simon closed his eyes, giving a soft chuckle. Without looking back at her, he gestured for her to move closer with one hand. Athena did so, shuffling toward him a bit.

"Perhaps I would do well to be blunt, then." he said. "I've given your question some thought, and I have an answer for you."

"… Uh _huh_ _…_ _?"_ Athena probed after a pause. "Out with it, Simon."

Rather than replying to her with words, Simon made a quick move, lurching forward and throwing his arm in beneath her left shoulder. Athena yelped in surprise as Simon lifted her off the bed and tossed her over his own shoulder, much like he had the night before.

"Hey-!" she laughed, her feet only just able to drag against the mattress. "You sure you wanna try that?"

Moving for herself, Athena first faked him out by pretending to begin the same move she'd used to knock him over the last time, only to double back and throw all her weight the other way instead. She grinned as Simon toppled forward, and she landed on her back on the bed, her long hair spilling over the edge and toward the floor. She laughed, touching a palm to Simon's cheek. He caught her hand once it arrived, pressing his own lightly against hers.

"You jerk…" she giggled, watching as Simon smiled back at her, the menacing expression he so often wore entirely absent. "Y'know, I was gonna wait for you to just give me an answer like a normal person. I had my responses all planned out."

"Oh?" Simon inquired smugly, pushing off the mattress with his free arm. "Do tell."

Athena smirked. "There _was_ a possible 'I love you' in there, if you just _have to_ know. Honestly, you're lucky that it's true."

Simon's hand lowered toward her, settling on the back of her head. His fingers snaked through her red hair as he leaned forward, pressing a kiss to her forehead. He smirked back at her, clearly enjoying every second spent watching her face flush a dark red. "You're right."

Athena, unable to hold herself back any longer, threw her arms up and around Simon's shoulders, dragging him down and into a hug. She smiled against his shoulder, and she was about to speak up once more before a certain digitized voice piped up from between them.

 _"So, when's the wedding?"_

All Athena could do was clamp a hand over Widget's casing out of embarrassment.

* * *

 _..._

 _Daresay I'm cutting it close on time, but there's part six._


	7. Together

"Athena!"

A brown-haired blur darted forward, crashing directly into Athena, who threw one foot back just in time to catch herself. Trucy hugged her tightly, her blue top hat tumbling off her head on impact. Athena gave a bright smile, returning the hug. After a moment, Trucy stepped back, bending down to retrieve her fallen hat.

"Happy birthday!" Athena said as Trucy dusted off her hat before tugging it back onto her head. Trucy was turning nineteen today, and the Wright Anything Agency was decked out in the unmistakable colours and décor of her birthday party.

"Thanks!" Trucy replied, grinning back. She paused, glancing around Athena and into the doorway leading back into the hall directly behind her. "Um… is Prosecutor Blackquill-…"

"Yeah, Simon should be in any minute." Athena assured her, rolling her eyes. "He wasn't exactly super eager about coming over, but I convinced him. He still hesitated once we got to the front door, so I left him out there until he felt ready to come in. He's probably still brooding."

Trucy stepped aside to let Athena enter the office proper. Apollo and Mr. Wright were already inside, and Athena spotted a number of other faces around as well; Pearl, Jinxie, one of the de Famme sisters, - she couldn't tell which from this distance - and at least a few other friends of Trucy's that she didn't recognize. She greeted everyone that she passed by as she crossed the room.

"Hey, boss! The place looks great, as always!" she said once she reached Phoenix's position.

"Thanks, Athena." he replied. "Apollo and I put a lot of work into it."

Athena smiled apologetically. "Sorry I couldn't help out - moving in is taking a lot more work than I expected, and Simon's really not much help."

"Don't worry about it." Phoenix said, shaking his head. "We've handled it before."

Athena continued past him and toward one of the couches, which had been moved to the wall opposite the door. She wanted to get off her feet for a bit. Once she arrived, dropping down next to Apollo, she took a quick look back toward the hallway door. Still so sign of Simon.

"Hey." Apollo followed her gaze and asked, "How're things going for you guys?"

Athena shrugged. "Simon's a lot less helpful than you might expect with getting all my stuff into the house. It's not like he's lazy - he just doesn't seem like he knows what to do with any of my things."

"I can relate." Apollo remarked. "When Mr. Wright first hired me, one of the first things Trucy had me do was reorganize almost half the office so I could have space for my desk. Have you ever _seen_ how much stuff she's got lying around in here?"

"I've probably tripped over almost every single thing by now." Athena jibed. Relaxing back against the couch, she sighed. "Still, Simon's trying. He's still got a load of his sister's stuff to deal with too, so helping me move in is probably a bit much for him."

"Hmm." Apollo turned to look out across the office room, watching the occupants go about their business. Athena looked up as the door opened again. She expected to see Simon finally entering, but instead of her boyfriend's primarily black and grey attire, she spotted the familiar lab coat of Ema Skye.

Apollo lurched. "Uhh…" he muttered, glancing back at her. "E-excuse me, Athena…"

Without another word, he hopped up from the couch and set off toward Ema. Athena smirked, watching his accelerated pace. Apollo always seemed a bit jumpy around their detective friend these days.

" _Ask her out already, Apollo_ _…_ _"_ she quietly urged him, drumming a fingertip against the couch's armrest.

Athena found it almost frustrating at times to watch Apollo flounder about in his oblivious way when it came to his love life, or lack thereof. First there had been Juniper; by now Athena was all but certain that Apollo was never going to pick up on the crush her oldest friend had on him. She knew that Juniper probably wouldn't be comfortable if she tried to push either of them into a relationship, so Athena stayed neutral on the matter. More recently, it had become painfully obvious to her that Apollo's friendship with Ema was beginning to take a slightly different turn, so she'd enjoyed watching his reactions whenever he and Ema were in the same room.

These thoughts brought Simon back into her mind. He didn't often _leave_ her thoughts these days, actually. She loved him, and she supposed that thinking of him almost constantly was probably a natural side effect.

For the past month or so, she and Simon had been discussing and executing her plans to move in with him in his sister's house. Aura was still in prison, and would be for a while yet. By now Simon had made her house quite comfortable for himself, and Athena sometimes wasn't certain of whether she spent more time there with him than in her own apartment when out of work. Slowly, Simon was starting to feel comfortable in regular society again. Athena wanted him to feel like he belonged again, and to forget all about his years of prison cells and his then-impending execution. Those days were gone for good.

Still, he wasn't in the door yet. Athena sighed. Getting up from the couch, she headed back across the room. She passed by Apollo, who had struck up a conversation with Ema. She tried to shoot him a meaningful look as she passed, but was uncertain of whether or not it had worked. Upon reaching the door, she stepped back out into the hall.

* * *

She found Simon standing a few steps away.

"Hey." she said, approaching him. The noise of the office faded as the door closed behind her.

Simon just nodded to her in response.

"Up for heading inside yet?" she inquired. "There's a couch free if we're quick. You won't have to hang around the crowd."

"My apologies for delaying things, Athena." he said, slipping his hands into his pockets.

"Hey, no worries," Athena assured him, "I'm not gonna try and rush you. Coming out of your shell takes time; I get that."

Simon glanced sideways at her, a light smirk tugging at his lips. "Do me a favour when we go inside, would you?" he prompted her.

"Uh… sure. What?" she responded, curious.

"I hardly need tell you that I'm going to stick out in there." Simon said. "Just try and ensure that no one thinks I'm here to arrest them."

Athena laughed. "Honestly, dressed like that, you look more like a coroner than a cop." she replied. Standing up on her toes, she gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek. Taking his hand in both of hers, she gestured toward the door. "C'mon," she prompted him, "Trucy's gonna be happy to see you."

* * *

 _..._

 _Quick week, huh? I hope you enjoyed these seven pieces. I had fun writing them._

 _Leave me a review, if that's your style._


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